More than 500 people are backing a campaign to save a village's green fields from development.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council is currently consulting residents in Packmoor on how the village's amenities, transport and housing can be improved.

The council owns 75 hectares of farmland to the east of Packmoor, and it is looking at developing some of this land to create a new village centre. But many residents fear that the council is aiming to build hundreds of homes on the land, which would mean the village losing its 'identity'.

Hundreds of people have signed an online petition, which claims that the council is looking at building 938 houses on the land. But the council has rejected this claim and says it does not recognise the figure.

At the time of writing, a total of 502 people had signed the petition, which was launched on Tuesday.

Lead petitioner Darren Bamford states: We are the residents of Packmoor Village. We have a simple message that needs to be delivered to Stoke-on-Trent City Council.

"Following the consultation meeting that took place on December 16, I feel the need to start this petition to protest the council's future plans for Packmoor.

"It became quite clear that the city council has housing plans estimated at 938 houses for the Packmoor greenlands and green fields, but have absolutely no intention of sharing these plans or any real factual information with the residents of packmoor at this stage.

"We cannot trust this Labour council. Therefore positive action is now required by the residents of Packmoor."

Council leaders say that Packmoor is isolated from the rest of Stoke-on-Trent and suffers from problems such as a lack of local shops and poor housing options. But they insist that they will listen to what the people of Packmoor tell them before developing any firm plans.

The council has hired consultants from Augarde to carry out a six-week community engagement, which includes a survey as well as a series of consultation events. At the end of the engagement process, a report will be drawn up, compiling residents' views.

A city council spokesperson said: "We recognise and welcome the right for everyone to have their say on the Packmoor vision and we encourage anyone who wants to have a say to come and see us at an engagement event – there are two more planned for January, more to be announced, and we are also setting up focus groups. You can also fill in the survey, which is being posted through letterboxes in Packmoor, and is available online at https://5jhiddjufga.typeform.com/packmoor."

Engagement events will take place at Packmoor Community Hall on Monday, January 13, and on Friday, January 17, both events running from 3.30pm to 6.30pm.